Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-07-08
DEATH STALKS ABROAD.
NEW JERSEY TOWN NEARLY WRECKED
BY AN EXPLOSION.

Ignited Zyionite Blows Six Buildings to
Pieces-Awfu Death of Miss nIichmore
Eight Men Drowned in Michigan
Mine-A Cataciysm in China-Terribly
Fatal Disasters in Europe.
ARLINGTON, N j., July s-The Zylonite
works exploded here Thursday morning,
blowing the village nearly to atoms. The
sides of houses were blown in, and terrible
destruction ensued. The explosion occurred
at IL o'clock. ASwede named Hulangrem and
Miss Michmore were instantly killed and
number were seriously injured, one fatally.
The works where the explosion took place
are located in the centre of the town The
nine buildings comprising the mandatory
were all brick with the exception of two.
The explosion occurred in the drying room
throwing the machinery and debris high in
the air, and scattering bricks and mortar for
hundreds of feet around. Six of the nine
buildings were totally demolished and two
others were partially leveled to the ground
Fire followed Immediately after the explos-
ion and spread so rapidly that all that was
left to burn was consumed in very short
time
The cause of the explosion is attributed to
a new banda young Swede named August
Hulangrem-who was carelessly handling
some gun cotton This however, can not be
positively known, as his body after the ex-
plpsion was found in neighboring field hor-
ribly mangled The only other person killed
was Miss A. T. Mictmore, woman about
80 years of age, forewoman in the collar and
cuff department. She was burned to death.
Miss Michmore had been sitting in an arm
chair in the packing room nearest the drying
building when the explosion took place. The
side of the building and mass of bricks were
blown in upon her, hurying her nearly to the
shoulders. Superintendent H. S. Barnes
seized her arms and tugged desperately to ex
trieate her. Deputy Coroner Crane DR.
Exton, and others who had rushed into the
grounds when the explosion occurred, Joined
him. The. flames swept toward them and they
clambered back through the ruins Mr..
Barnes remained longest, and the flames bis
tered his face before he abandoned the girl,
who was still living Even after him two
other workmen, Frendle and Smith, rushed
in and made another effort to drag the girl
out. She moaned as they tugged at her
shoulders but in an instant the flames drove
them back
Most of the thirty people employed in the
works were foreigners, many OF them having
only lately arrived in this country. Nearly
all of them are more or less injured; none of
their injuries, however, are thought to be of
fatal nature
The explosion caused panic in the village,
hardly house or store having whole win
dow left. The Greenwood Lake railroad sta
ton, which stands about $50 feet from the
Zylonite works, was badly wrecked, the doors
being blown off and other damage done. The
force of the explosion was so great that per
sons were knocked down in the streets and at
their houses,
The factory was owned by Philadelphia
capitalists, and the principal articles pro
duced were collars. cuffs, umbrella handles,
piano kegs, etc, made from celluloid The
loss on the factory will reach $4,000. on
which there is no insurance. The townspeo-
pile will lose several thousand dollars. There
is no fire apparatus in Arlington, but the in
habtants did everything in their power to
quench the flames and look after the safety of
the employees